


What Is Love? Baby Don’t-

by EtherealNyx



Series: Pre-Game Galar Works [3]
Category: Pocket Monsters | Pokemon (Main Video Game Series), Pocket Monsters | Pokemon - All Media Types, Pocket Monsters: Sword & Shield | Pokemon Sword & Shield Versions
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Fluff, M/M, Pining, just in case. This isn’t gonna happen canonically, there’s no tag for Wooloo and i’m Sad
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-09-05
Updated: 2019-09-11
Packaged: 2020-10-10 13:37:26
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,167
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20528903
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/EtherealNyx/pseuds/EtherealNyx
Summary: Victor needs some time to think. Good thing he doesn’t have to decide on things alone.In which a rivalry begins, and everyone’s all the happier for it.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Hey, welcome to another fic to celebrate my hype for Sword and Shield! Woo! In this one, I’m finally tackling my love for Hop by actually writing him.
> 
> Once again, as canon content emerges, some of my fics’ details become a bit obsolete in exchange, but it’s fun to explore anyway! I’ll leave the rest of my notes for the end, but please enjoy. 
> 
> As a warning, I don’t have a beta, so my bad if there’s any grammatical errors. Please let me know if anything! Thanks! Have fun.

There was something about lying down in a field of grass that made Victor feel so much better. Everything in the world seemed to disappear; only the blue of the sky, the smell of the grass, and the soft bleats of Wooloo remained. His mind drifted, but he wasn’t scared in the slightest. He’d be able to bring himself back.

In. Out.

As always, his thoughts eventually settled on Him. It wasn’t surprising. One second, he was staring into the light blue void, and the next, he was thinking of yellow eyes and calloused hands. Victor was sure he had passed the threshold for being in love years ago, but he still liked to think of himself as ‘smitten’. It was a comforting thing to be.

One of the Wooloo stumbled over with a startled sound. He lazily reached up to pat its side, soothing it. Maybe he could trade one of them for a Luvdisc? It wasn’t a Galarian tradition, nor particularly useful, but surely it would get the message across. 

“What do you think, girl?” Victor whispered. “Do you think he’d like it?”

“Doh doh doh!” It cried in response. 

He smiled lovingly at the sheep. “Thanks, sweetheart.” Plan ended. How could he even think of giving away one of his babies? They were so _ cute! _ The Gossifleur market was probably bigger these days anyway. Maybe that would work? 

He sighed to himself. If only he wasn’t allergic…

His hand came back down to rest on the ground. The nearby Wooloo laid down too, the fluff of its wool obscuring part of his vision. He couldn’t bring himself to mind though; the scent was rather clean this morning. Once again, his mind swirled down, down, down…

Footsteps crushed the grass by his head. Victor jerked back to alertness. “Huh?!?”

The object of his affections came into view, smiling brilliantly. “Don’t worry!” Hop chuckled. “It’s just me. Knew I’d find you here.”

He flushed hard. “R-Really?” Not for the first time, Victor counted his lucky stars that his crush was so oblivious. 

He idly scratched at the back of his neck. “Well, yeah. We’ve been friends for this long. You always go to the field after an argument.” 

Ah, right. The argument. He had been doing so well avoiding thinking of it that he forgot it happened in the first place.

“Can I lay down?” Hop asked, like he was reading his mind.

The red color in his cheeks only got worse, but he quickly nodded. “Sure!” Victor blurted out, a bit too loud. He was suddenly acutely aware of how messy his hair was.

The other boy carefully settled beside him. He tried his best not to immediately turn to stare, but old habits died hard. Hop’s amber eyes shone in the light. “What’s got you and Gloria all riled up, hm?” 

“Going for the big questions, huh?” He forced a laugh. “She… Well, she told me this morning that she thinks I shouldn’t go on my journey with you guys. At least, not right away.”

Hop’s brow furrowed. “But why? You’re not bad at battling, and your strategies are really cool!”

It took all of Victor’s willpower to hold in his excited squeal. _ Your strategies are really cool! _ He’d be replaying that for a _ week _. “I-It’s not about that. She doesn’t think I can handle the stress.”

“Of travel?”

“Of the Gym Challenge.”

Really, at the end of the day, that was the problem. The Gym Challenge was where all the most promising newcomers tested their luck against the strongest trainers in the region. It was cutthroat to an insane degree, even for Galar. Just mentioning his intent to apply for a sponsorship had set his fiery cousin off for an hour. 

“She doesn’t think you can do it?” Hop looked dismayed. He was too scared to ask why.

Victor sighed again. “She said she _ knows _I can’t. The media, apparently, are Mandibuzzs out for my blood specifically.” 

He scowled. It was such an alien expression on his face that Victor was, for a moment, taken aback. “That’s Tauros crap!” He snapped.

Recoiling from the outburst happened automatically. “Um, wh-what?” He stammered out.

The intensity of Hop’s gaze pierced him through the chest. “You heard me! I’ve been following the Gym Challenge for as long as I can remember! People like you do well all the time, and even if they don’t beat my brother, they still go on to do great things!” He ranted. “If you want to go for it, go for it!”

Victor blinked. He wasn’t used to such enthusiastic support. “O-Oh. Thanks.”

Hop instantly switched back to a sparkling grin. “No prob! Are you still going for it?”

“Y-Yeah. Yeah! I think so. It’ll be a nice way to get stronger. I don’t think I’ll ever travel if I wait to study for my breeder license first.” Victor rambled. “I don’t know if I’ll get a sponsorship though. I’ve never been all that exceptional.” 

His crush nudged him with an elbow. “Oi, cut that out. Don’t talk shit about my best friend. You’re perfect! People are going to be lining up to see your matches someday, mark my words.”

He giggled nervously. “That sounds more like something they’ll be doing for _ you _.”

“Why?”

“_ Why? _” Victor repeated, incredulous. “Hop, you’re amazing!” 

“You’re just saying that!” He laughed, almost too loud. “I’m not as cool as you.” 

Without thinking too hard on it, he reached up to cup his face. Both of them went very still. Even the Wooloo stopped making noise.

“Hop.” He said firmly. “You have a good heart and mind. If anyone can be the next Champion, it’s you. I _ believe _ in you.”

For a moment, Victor thought Hop’s cheeks turned a darker shade, but it was probably just his imagination. “I… I believe in you too! We’ll tackle this together!” Eh. That was better than nothing. 

He let go of his face. “Of course we will.” He said, thoroughly satisfied.

Hop continued to stare. That was a bit odd of him. “Do you have something to say?” Victor asked. He knew _ him _very well too.

“Listen. I planned to ask this at the start of our journey, but…” He hesitated. “Would you… I mean, do you want to be rivals?” 

Warmth blossomed in his chest. “Rivals? Me and you?” He couldn’t help the words from coming out.

“If you want to!” 

The nervous note to Hop’s own voice calmed his nerves. “That’s not even a question. I’d _ always _want to.”

Maybe that had too much conviction behind it, but with the way his friend grinned at his answer, he couldn’t bring himself to care about being embarrassed. 

“Then we’re good?”

“We’re good.”

Victor rolled back to face the sky, and smiled at every cloud.

* * *

_ Oh, sweetheart, how the gods must shower you with blessings. Please let me spell out the ways… _

_\- _a first draft of a love letter from a certain someone 


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am SUCH a clown. Honk honk, everyone! 
> 
> Anyway, I was thinking to myself about how much I love Hop, and then ended up writing this during my lunch break. Is it good? Perhaps. Is it self indulgent? Yeah.
> 
> If you are here for added cheese on your already cheesy pizza, you are in the right place. ^w^ It’s Hop time.

_ I’d like to think I know you better than I know myself…  _

\- a scrap of a ripped up love letter

* * *

There was something about running down a path that made Hop feel so much better. Everything in the world blurred out of focus; only the burn in his chest and the pulse of blood in his brain remained. Adrenaline and joy mingled together, like old friends at a party. He needed to see Victor, or he’d probably burst!

_ Oh, there I go again. _

Lately, his thoughts were full of his best friend, way more than he was used to. It was always silly observations too, like the way his cheeks flushed when someone gave him the most basic of compliments, and how silky his hair was. It didn’t make any sense. One second, everything was fine, and the next, he was fixated on a person who probably didn’t want that much attention. 

He swallowed past the sudden lump in his throat. There’d be a time to process how he was feeling later. Today was a great day! Nothing could ruin it.

“Victor’s not here.” Gloria spoke brusquely, promptly ruining his day.

“Yeah? He told me he would be staying home today. Where did he go?” Hop had a hunch as to why he wasn’t there, but he’d ideally get to hear it straight from the Rapidash’s mouth.

Her expression turned harsh. “Out.”

Disappointment sapped the energy out of his bones. “You guys had a fight  _ again _ ?” Nowadays, said phenomena was happening more frequently than he was comfortable with. For cousins who were, in their own words, like siblings, they were butting heads at a monthly rate that exceeded the rest of their lives. 

She gave new meaning to the word ‘glowered’. “S’not any of your business,  _ especially  _ since it’s your fault, so don’t give me that tone. I don’t have to stand here and listen to you!”

“ _ My  _ fault?” He protested. “How is it my fault? Did I upset Victor or something?”

Gloria’s face took a turn for the bewildered. “You? Upset Victor? Please, that’s not at all what it was about!”

“Then enlighten me!” On reflex, Hop put his foot in the way of the door. “Why are you guys mad at each other? Why  _ now _ ?”

“I already  _ told  _ you.” She snapped. “You’re not involved, and he isn’t here, so buzz off, Beedrill. Get the fuck out of my house.”

He went. There was no point in waiting around for her rage to burn off anyway. He knew where he’d find his friend. 

Hop liked running in fields. Victor liked laying down in them. Hopping the fence, he followed the sound of Wooloo until he stumbled upon the sleeping boy. For a moment, he watched his peaceful face from a distance. It was nice to see him looking so relaxed. If only he could look that way all the time.

His heart constricted in his chest.

Before Hop could contemplate doing more sensible things, like fleeing the scene, he crushed the grass by Victor’s head on impulse with his feet.

“Huh?!?” His best friend jerked awake, trembling from sudden terror. 

He grinned down at Victor, harboring the hope that he was transmitting good vibes. “Don’t worry!” He chuckled, not at all surprised by his reaction. “It’s just me. Knew I’d find you here.”

“R-Really?” His best friend stammered, turning an almost fluorescent shade of red. It took all of his effort to not make a sound at the sight. By the gods, Victor was too sweet for his own good. Hop counted his lucky stars that he was so oblivious to his tumultuous feelings.

In an attempt to look casual, he scratched at the back of his neck. “Well, yeah. We’ve been friends for this long. You always go to the field after an argument.” 

The field. He wanted to say  _ their  _ field, but maybe it was too soon. He was always moving too fast, sometimes even for himself. 

Victor looked thoughtful, with just a hint of pain. He was probably running through the memory in his head.

“Can I lay down?” Hop asked before he could regret it. Leon would be cringing  _ so  _ hard if he saw this.  _ Little bro.  _ He’d shake his head, the way he always did.  _ You’ve  _ really _ got no game! _

“Sure!” Sometimes, the other boy threw out words like awkwardly crafted bullets, derailing trains of thought without any finesse. It was almost as cute as his hair, all mussed up from rest. 

Before  _ that  _ consumed his thoughts, he laid down beside him, turning immediately to peer at his face. Victor blinked back, eyes large and shiny. “What’s got you and Gloria all riled up, hm?” He asked kindly, a little guilty that he was going to ruin his good mood.

“Going for the big questions, huh?” This was punctuated with a laugh as valuable as pyrite. “She…”

_ Take your time!  _ Hop thought, having no intention of actually interrupting him.

“Well,” Victor continued slowly, “she told me this morning that she thinks I shouldn’t go on my journey with you guys. At least, not right away.”

Confusion sunk its teeth into him immediately. “But why? You’re not bad at battling, and your strategies are really cool!”

Hop was fond of making Pokémon battles an art, but Victor had aspects of it down to a science. No one  _ ever  _ beat him in virtual simulations, except for when he let them. Gloria refused to play them anymore; he suspected that she was too dejected by her scrawny cousin trouncing her so soundly to bother.

“I-It’s not about that.” Victor stumbled over his words, even as a pleased light entered his eyes. (He  _ really _ had to remember to compliment him more often.) “She doesn’t think I can handle the stress.”

_ Gloria  _ thought that? Sure, he was a little soft, but that was a good thing! Hell, he wanted to be a  _ breeder _ , for Zamazenta’s sake! If he could handle the stress of caring for baby Pokémon before the age of 13, surely he could handle traveling around Galar. “Of travel?” He asked, just to clarify.

“Of the Gym Challenge.”

Hop’s blood stopped cold. 

“She doesn’t think you can do it?” He couldn’t keep the despair from leaking out into his voice. What if Victor actually listened to her? He couldn’t do this without him, and he didn’t want to! 

The sigh coming from his best friend’s lips hurt him even more. “She said she  _ knows  _ I can’t.” A hint of bitterness leaked through. “The media, apparently, are Mandibuzzs out for my blood specifically.”

_ Oh, darling, can’t you just pick a route and stick to it? Those damn reporters will eat you alive!  _

Maybe it was just because of his personal experiences, and maybe it was down to the fact that the Gym Challenge couldn’t stop ruining every bit of his life, but he was over it. 

“That’s Tauros crap!” Hop retorted angrily. 

It stung to see Victor recoil from him, even though he knew no offense was meant by it. “Um, wh-what?”

“You heard me!” He launched himself headlong into a spiel, unable and unwilling to stop himself. “I’ve been following the Gym Challenge for as long as I can remember! People like you-”  _ wonderful, beautiful, kind people like- no, stop thinking about this  _ “- do well all the time, and even if they don’t beat my brother,” because who could do  _ that _ ? “they still go on to do great things! If you want to go for it,  _ go for it _ !”

Hop bit down on his lip,  _ hard _ . Too fast again. Was he too obvious? Would Victor even tell him if he was uncomfortable with his affections? He was so polite…

“O-Oh.” Victor sounded winded. “Thanks.”

He put on a smile, keeping all of the relief relegated to the twitch in his toes. “No prob! Are you still going for it?” Gods, did that sound as desperate as it did in his head?

“Y-Yeah.” He said absentmindedly, without much conviction. “Yeah! I think so. It’ll be a nice way to get stronger. I don’t think I’ll  _ ever  _ travel if I wait to study for my breeder license first. I don’t know if I’ll get a sponsorship though. I’ve never been all that exceptional.”

He didn’t sound bothered by what he said, but the words made Hop’s gut twist into knots. He gently nudged his side, poking him with his elbow. “Oi, cut that out. Don’t talk shit about my best friend.” And he was, no matter what. That was a  _ fact _ . 

“You’re perfect! People are going to be lining up to see your matches someday, mark my words.”

Now that was a dangerously sappy sentiment. Still, he couldn’t bring himself to care. Not when Victor was ragging on himself. No one got to do that, not even him.

“That sounds more like something they’ll be doing for  _ you _ .” The giggle the sweet boy let loose was chock full of nerves. 

“Why?”

It came out before Hop could stop it. Victor looked at him like he did once when a Yamper took a shit on his third favorite shoes. “ _ Why _ ?”

He averted his gaze, keeping quiet.  _ Uh oh.  _

“Hop, you’re amazing!” 

All hail the king of genuine statements that made boys like Hop want to die. “You’re just saying that!” He deflected with a slightly sharp chuckle. “I’m not as cool as you.”  _ Then again, can anyone ever reach that high? _

Before he could roll away, warm, soft hands were holding his head steady. He stiffened.  _ Victor’s touching me? Victor’s touching me!  _ Blood rushed in his ears as the world seemed to hold its breath.

“Hop.” This was a determined tone, the type that brokered no argument. “You have a good heart and mind. If anyone can be the next Champion, it’s you. I  _ believe  _ in you.”

Later on, he’d replay this moment in his head, like a broken record caught on a track. His face felt dangerously hot. Part of him wanted desperately to hide away from this boy with his unwavering love for the world. 

But he couldn’t. No matter what he tried, Hop just couldn’t leave him be.

“I…”  _ Damn it, dude, pull yourself together!  _ “I believe in you too! We’ll tackle this together!” It wasn’t the right time to say anything, but he wanted to be chased all the way to the top, no matter how long it took. And there was only one person he truly wanted to stand by when the time came.

Victor retreated, but the feeling of his fingers was seared into his cheeks. “Of course we will.” He said it like he never had a doubt. 

_ Pretty. Oh, Arceus, why did you make someone so pretty? _

“Do you have something to say?” Victor smiled, the perfect picture of acceptance. In a flash, it occurred to him just what he had to do.

“Listen.” He implored more than demanded, even while knowing it was a waste of a word. “I planned to ask this at the start of our journey but…” 

He faltered, and Victor’s look did not change. If he tried hard enough, he could pretend to have enough courage to ask this of him. No matter how presumptuous it would be.

“Would you… I mean, do you want to be rivals?”

“Rivals?” He repeated it like a quiet prayer. “Me and you?”

“If you want to!” 

Hop used to dream of having a rival, but not like how Leon and Sonia used to be. He wanted the type you saw in movies, the kind of person you could keep growing with until the day it all stopped. Sue him for being cheesy if you wanted, but that had always been on his mind.

If Victor guessed that in the heat of the moment, he didn’t let on. Most people would have said something. All he did was smile, a beacon of reassurance.

“That’s not even a question.” He told him. “I’d  _ always  _ want to.”

And, in Hop’s heart, he knew there was nothing better than this.

**Author's Note:**

> While my first Galar fic is outdated, I still stand by my concept that rivals in Galar have many, many contexts depending on the relationship between the people in general. Some are romantic, others are platonic, and some are far more antagonistic. That’s basically the basis of the ending there! To clarify, Hop means it in a bit of a tentatively romantic but still pretty platonic sense, not that Victor would be picking up on that. I’ll probably come back to the topic in another work.
> 
> What really inspired this is my sudden love for lovecore as an aesthetic, and randomly applying that to Victor. It’s shaped my writing of him ever since. Is he cheesy? Yeah. Am I having fun? Absolutely.
> 
> Also, this is a minor detail, but I write Gloria and Victor as close cousins. It’ll be relevant in another work. ^^”
> 
> That’s all for now though! Thanks so much for reading and have a good day. Feel free to contact me at bi-hop (my tumblr) if you want to chat! :D


End file.
